African Women's Art

I am delighted to share this conversation with the brilliant Ebun Sodipo. Ebun is a prolific artist and writer whose work spans performance, installation, video, and text. She creates work for black trans people of the future, guided by black feminist study with a methodology of collage and fabulation. I think of Ebun work as a beautiful mirror. It locates and produces real and imagined narratives...

I am delighted to share my conversation with the inspiring Everlyn Nicodemus. Everlyn is one of the strongest feminist voices to come out of Eastern Africa over the past 30 years, and an incredibly prolific artist, writer, and curator. I think of Everlyn Nicodemus as a “lamplight” — a term used by civil rights activist Vincent Harding to describe people who light the way and show us what’s possibl...

I’m delighted to share this wonderful conversation with Zoë . Zoë is an artist-curator working under the artist name, Zoë Zo, Zoë Tumika & Zoë Guthrie. They engage with clay and image (re)production to process, understand and share articulations of the world around them. Their practice is a site for them to: breathe; reconfigure; play; be (a)live; shift through space; exist in multiple tempora...

I’m happy to share this inspiring conversation with Dr. Jareh Das on the legacy of the legendary Nigerian ceramicist, Ladi Kwali. Dr. Das is a brilliant researcher, writer, and curator who lives and works between West Africa and the UK. Her interests in (global) modern and contemporary art are cross-disciplinary. Her understanding is filtered through the lens of performance art, which informs both...

I’m excited to share this insightful conversation I had with Okwoli Moses Elaigwu. Okwoli Moses is an educationist, writer, historian and accountant who takes a keen interest in oral literatures of Idoma/Kwararafa people in Nigeria. This conversation was part of my Language of the Land research project funded by Creative Scotland. In our conversation we discuss the key philosophies underlying Idom...

I’m delighted to share this laughter-filled conversation I had with Kialy Tihngang. Kialy is British-born Cameroonian visual artist working in sculpture, video, textiles, animation and photomontage, often in collaboration with performers and musicians. I love the way Kialy’s work combines the humour of Nollywood with retrofuturism, satire and the visual language of adverts for Western audiences. S...

It was an honour and joy to speak with the brilliant Jackie Kay on the podcast. Jackie Kay is a prolific and award-wining poet, playwright and novelist. From 2016 to 2021 she was the Makar, the poet laureate of Scotland. Reading Jackie Kay’s work feels like such a warm balm to my spirit. She thoughtfully explores the beauty, challenges and complexities of life with love, grace and humour. In our c...

I’m delighted to share this joyful conversation with Mae Diansangu. Mae is a queer poet and spoken word artist from Aberdeen. Her debut poetry collection, Bloodsongs , was released by Tapsalteerie poetry press in 2024. Reading Bloodsongs felt like a call and response—each poem invited something from me: a quiet hum at a powerful ending, laughter at the humour, or the urge to try voicing the Scots...

Professor Herbert M. Cole (Professor Emeritus) taught the history of African Art and Architecture at the University of California Santa Barbara between 1968-2003. Professor Cole co-authored the seminal book "Igbo Arts: Community and Cosmos" with Chike Aniakor. He is author, co-author, or editor of twelve books and more than 60 articles, essays or chapters. Professor Cole turned 89 in 202...

I am delighted to share this inspiring conversation I had with Beulah Ezeugo. Beulah is a researcher and curator. Her practice engages with postcolonial geographies, archives and memory, and expands outwards through exhibition-making, programming, and publication. Recent engagements and awards include SIRIUS Critic-in-Residence (2024), 11:11 x iniva Stuart Hall Library Residency (2024), and Platfo...

It was such a pleasure to chat with Dorine Mugisha. Dorine is an international performer, instructor, retreat leader and project manager. We talked about making space for play and self expression, her journey so far including her beginnings in law & Sociology, her solo piece Asili and creating her retreat in Tanzania. Dorine also shared how her love for the dance style Whacking began and it’s...

I’m delighted to share this inspiring conversation I had with Banji Chona. Banji is an artist, researcher, curator and scholar of Zambezian earth.  When I think of Banji’s work, I think of care in all of it’s definitions. The attention and thought she uses in bringing together ancestral baTonga knowledge with experimental contemporary techniques. Her deep consideration when working in community an...

I had a brilliant chat with Femi Bajulaye about the importance of women in Yoruba arts and cultural creation.  Femi is a Yoruba Artist whose artistic practice, writing and film production focus on issues of migration, African identity and the spirituality of Yoruba cosmology. In this conversation we talk about the importance of women in Yoruba arts and cultural creation.  We discuss the book Paint...

This is a solo episode! I explore my creative journey through architecture, community programming and now visual arts. The people that have influenced my practice and how I have been exploring re-membering relationships with the rest of nature, ancestry and the body.  Please see below some of the links I mentioned. And I’ll share some images on my instagram. Enjoy!  References Radiance from the wa...

Film-maker and theatre-maker Adura Onashile has created sublimely beautiful and tender works of art in her short film "Expensive Shit" and her first feature film "Girl". In our conversation we explore Adura’s vision of "Girl" as a meditation on the love between Grace and Ama, as mother and daughter. We also discuss navigating the creation and collaborative process, ar...

It’s been brilliant to revisit this conversation I had with Professor Chuu Krydz Ikwuemesi as part of my research project Language of the Land. He is Professor of Painting and African Art history at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.  We explore Professor Ikwuemesi's work with uli classicists. Women who practice the body and wall painting tradition of the Igbo of South Eastern Nigeria. We disc...

DYLEMA (Do You. Let Every Man Adapt) writes one of my favourite newsletters. Every Monday I look forward to receiving a heartfelt, and insightful letter that makes me think, question and reimagine. Writing is just one of DYLEMA's creative expressions. Amongst many things she also creates powerful music, and stunning gold leafed portraits that support African women on their journey of self discover...

This week is a mini episode! I'm sharing a story that came to me at a time when I was imagining what trust felt like and felt like water to me. So I spoke and this is the story that came through. It sits alongside the clay piece in the cover image called "the mask of fear and doubt; objects may appear larger than in real life." I come back to the story often and sharing it with peopl...

I am delighted to share the inspiring conversation I had Nyokabi Kariũki. Nyokabi is a Kenyan composer, sound artist and artistic researcher. Her sonic imagination is ever-evolving, spanning from classical contemporary to experimental electronic music.  We explore her experiences growing up in Kenya and the influences that shape her work. We discuss her journey learning her language Kikuyu, the co...

On this episode we are joined by Carina Haouchine. Carina is a Scottish Algerian filmmaker, writer, and musician whose work shapes narratives across mediums. In this lovely conversation we explored Carina's films Ululation and Session Zero as well as her book Machaho: A Berber Folktale. We discussed working with the personal, her explorations of Berber language and culture, and the connections...

Welcome to the first episode of the African Women’s Art Podcast! We had an inspiring conversation with Dr Tracie Chima Utoh-Ezeajugh, Nigerian playwright and Professor of Theatre and Film Design. We discuss her research into uli, Igbo women’s body and mural art. We explore uli as body art, how it is used to construct identity, it’s relationship to the land and healing. We also discuss the survival...

Welcome to the African Women's Podcast! The podcast where we celebrate African Women and our art, on the continent and in the diaspora. Find out about the origins of the podcast.